Environmental news feed

- In central Belize, the Maya Forest Corridor, a narrow section of forested land, is key for wildlife movements across Belize, conservationists say.- A land acquisition by the Maya Forest Corridor Trust in 2021 was a major step forward in protecting the corridor.- Members of the Trust are now working on ways to secure and bolster the ecological integrity of the land, but face threats like roads, fire and even a national sporting event.

- The U.S., the largest importer of wildlife products in the world, brings in nearly 10,000 species of plants and animals into the country legally, some of which have a high potential to become invasive species.- A recent study assessed these imported species and identified 32 as having the highest risk for becoming invasive, posing threats to local ecosystems and to human health.- These include venomous reptiles like puff adders and spitting cobras, and freshwater fish; similar species that have already established themselves as invasives have wrought havoc on native wildlife and caused widespread economic harm.- The researchers say their findings can help authorities regulate the imports of such high-risk species and add them to watchlists to prevent them from becoming invasives.

Researchers have developed a noninvasive DNA tool to help monitor hard-to-trace African carnivores, including caracals and leopards, making it potentially useful in the conservation of elusive and increasingly threatened species. “Carnivores are really difficult to study/observe in the wild, and even if a fecal sample is found, it is often difficult to determine which species

- Sarus cranes, once abundant in Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, are rapidly declining due to unplanned urbanization, wetland loss and habitat degradation, with local elders recalling their disappearance from areas that were once full of ponds and farmland.- A recent survey found that 59% of respondents believe the crane’s range has shrunk, citing habitat loss (44%), hunting (19%) and wetland degradation (16%) as key threats to the bird.- Lumbini province hosts Nepal’s largest population of sarus cranes, but only four pairs remain within the 200-hectare (500-acre) Lumbini gardens that constitute a popular pilgrimage site and have seen a surge in the built-up area

- The most severe Amazon drought on record, in 2023, followed by a new high in 2024, triggered multiple threats to Amazonian fish biodiversity, such as warming waters, loss of habitat, limited reproduction, and compromised growth.- Fish are the main source of protein and other nutrients for those who live in the region; species most threatened by droughts include several that are important to local fisheries.- Stronger droughts are already projected in the region in a scenario where global warming reaches 1.5°C (2.7°F); if it exceeds 2°C (3.6°F), the risk of prolonged, severe and frequent droughts increases significantly, with impacts on food security and Amazonian biodiversity.- Short-term policies can be adapted to this new reality, such as adjustment of closed seasons, when fishing of certain species is banned; in the medium term, it’s crucial to invest in modernizing the monitoring of fish stocks, experts say.

- Cambodian journalist Ouk Mao was arrested May 16 by plainclothes military officers, according to his wife and colleagues.- Mao had previously faced legal charges and physical attacks as a result of his environmental reporting.- It is not yet clear what charges, in any, Mao currently faces. As of 10:30 p.m., Mao’s wife said he remained in temporary detention at the Stung Treng provincial prison.

- A Hindu religious sect tried to enter Ecuador, Paraguay and Bolivia by lying to authorities and Indigenous leaders.- The self-proclaimed nation, the United States of Kailasa, operates from different parts of the world and offered high sums of money to Indigenous leaders in exchange for lands to exploit or conserve for carbon credit projects, say legal experts.- One contract was a lease for 1,000 years, to be renewed perpetually, allowing the self-proclaimed nation to exploit the natural resources in the leased territory.- Authorities announced the beginning of an investigation into land trafficking and criminal organization against the people involved in the contracts of the perpetual leasing of Bolivian land in favor of the self-proclaimed nation of Kailasa.

- Lighting sang, a traditional incense made from juniper and other local plants, is a sacred daily ritual among Buddhist communities in Nepal’s Trans-Himalayan regions like Manang, symbolizing purification and peace.- Though classified as “least concern” globally by the IUCN, black juniper faces pressure due to habitat fragmentation, overharvesting for incense and increasing commercial demand.- Climate change, especially prolonged winter droughts and delayed snowfall, is impairing the regeneration of juniper shrubs, making them more vulnerable despite their natural resilience in harsh alpine conditions.

A new study finds that scientists have likely underestimated heat stress on coral reefs in the South Atlantic Ocean, further raising concerns for coral bleaching amid climate change. The study notes that while the Caribbean and Indo-Pacific have well-established long-term ocean temperature and coral monitoring programs, the South Atlantic Ocean has lagged behind, causing gaps

Most countries that pledged to reduce the number of birds being illegally killed along an important migratory route in Europe and the Mediterranean region are failing to do so, a new report shows. For the report, conservation organizations BirdLife International and EuroNatur tracked the progress of 46 countries in Europe, Africa and the Middle East,

- Researchers found that New World monkeys can produce extreme yodeling-like sounds by rapidly switching between their vocal folds (for low tones) and specialized vocal membranes (for high tones), achieving frequency jumps up to 12 times greater than humans can manage.- Scientists conducted their research at Bolivia’s La Senda Verde animal refuge, using recordings and electroglottographs on live monkeys.- Humans lost these vocal membranes during evolution, trading vocal gymnastics for more stable speech that’s easier to understand.- The complex vocalizations likely help monkeys manage social relationships and grab attention in the rainforest.

The Republic of Congo has one of the lowest deforestation rates in the world, but “uncontrolled gold mining” in recent years could harm the country’s biodiversity, especially in the Sangha region, Mongabay’s Elodie Toto reported in a video published in February. Sangha, located in the country’s north, on the border with Cameroon and the Central

Flamingos, often pictured standing still with their heads submerged in water, make for a pretty picture. But peep underwater, and you’ll find the tall, elegant pink birds bobbing their heads, chattering their beaks, and creating mini tornados to efficiently guide microscopic prey into their mouths, according to a new study. “Think of spiders, which produce

- China has updated its pharmacopeia, its list of approved traditional and Western drugs, to remove traditional formulas with pangolin scales, offering hope for pangolin conservation — but also leaving some concerns about continued production.- The new edition, effective Oct. 1, 2025, removes both raw pangolin scales and all formulas known to contain them, marking a significant step forward in conservation efforts, though conservationists caution that a few untracked formulas may still remain.- The change reflects both international pressure, such as a 2022 resolution by the global wildlife trade convention, and growing internal advocacy within the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) community for more sustainable practices.- Despite the positive development, conservationists remain cautious, as changes to the pharmacopeia don’t amount to a full market ban, and China’s domestic market for pangolin scales is still open under an annual 1-metric-ton quota, allowing continued production.

- Scientists are using radio telemetry to map out the home range and habitats of tiger salamanders in the Hamptons in New York.- Tiger salamanders spend most of their time in burrows underground; they emerge during breeding season and lay eggs in seasonal pools.- Studying their movements and how far they move from the pools is challenging because of their underground lifestyle.- With the help of radio transmitters, scientists have found that the salamanders move greater distances than previously thought; they were also found to burrow under fields.

Every third Friday of May is Endangered Species Day. More than 900 known species are already extinct to date, while at least 28,500 others are listed as endangered or critically endangered by the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. As the world’s natural biomes get chipped away by aggressive resource extraction, mammals, fungi, corals and

- Five of the six nonhuman primate species found in the Indonesia’s Mentawai Islands have traditionally been hunted; traditional beliefs forbid killing the sixth, Kloss’s gibbon, or bilou.- With widespread deforestation and the erosion of traditional practices that governed hunting behavior, all of the islands’ primates are now endangered or critically endangered.- Malinggai Uma Tradisional Mentawai, a grassroots, Indigenous-led organization, is working with communities to protect primates within the framework of Indigenous Mentawai customs.

- In April, scientists published the first-ever open-source map of fishmeal and fish oil factories around the world.- The scientists found 506 factories across some 60 countries, and in most cases were able to identify the companies that own them.- Fishmeal and fish oil production is controversial because it can incentivize the overexploitation of ocean ecosystems, depleting marine food webs, and negatively impact coastal communities that rely on fish for nutrition and livelihoods.- In addition to location data, the scientists collected data on the types of fish many of the factories use and whether the raw material they process is fish byproduct or whole fish, which critics view as more problematic.

A “remarkably well-preserved” fossil discovered in Brazil, dating back 113 million years, is now the oldest ant to have ever been found by scientists, a new study has revealed. The ancient fossil was found preserved in a limestone and “represents the earliest undisputed ant known to science,” the authors write in the study. The limestone,

- In Northeastern India’s Assam, women have joined forces to save the resident greater adjutant stork (Leptoptilos dubius), known locally as the hargila, which was long considered a “dirty, smelly bird” that villagers would attack.- The women, who call themselves the Hargila Army, incorporate the birds into their songs, prayers and weavings in order to help protect the species and spark appreciation for them.- Since starting these efforts, the IUCN has reclassified the greater adjutant from endangered to near threatened, as the birds’ population numbers have risen.- A new paper explores the effectiveness of incorporating the hargila into local folklore as a conservation strategy.

- A new report calls on palm oil-buying firms to take serious steps to address systemic imbalances in the distribution of profits across the supply chain.- Smallholder farmers produce nearly one-third of raw palm oil globally, yet they receive a disproportionately small share of industry profits compared to large corporations, the report says.- Small-scale producers are often locked out of high-value markets due to a lack of technical capacity and financial capital to meet increasingly hefty due diligence requirements driven by consumer demand for less environmentally destructive goods.- The authors urge industry buyers to adjust their purchasing policies to be more inclusive of smallholder farmers, helping to create an industry that is more socially responsible and less environmentally destructive.

- In Brazil, the expansion of coastal wind energy has already disrupted traditional communities’ way of life; now, the concern is that these impacts will be repeated at sea, after a bill regulating offshore wind energy was signed into law in January.- In the state of Ceará, 26 projects overlap with small fishing zones used by hundreds of traditional communities, including maroon, Indigenous, fisher and extractivist groups that have had a direct relationship with the sea for generations.- The northeast region seeks to expand offshore wind energy, as it is vital to the production of green hydrogen aimed for European markets.

- As environmental crime goes global and awareness of its massive scope rises, finding agreement between governments on which illegal trades to target, and how, is not simple and leads to a piecemeal approach, a new op-ed argues.- The case for international law enforcement cooperation is growing stronger, though, with the U.N. recently launching an intergovernmental process to explore new protocols targeting environmental crime under its existing convention against transnational organized crime, UNTOC.- “A dedicated UNTOC protocol won’t solve everything, but it would mark a critical step toward harmonizing laws, closing enforcement gaps, and raising the cost for environmental offenders,” the author writes.- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

The carbon credit certifier Verra has placed the Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project under review for a second time, it confirmed to Mongabay in an emailed statement. Until the review is completed, the project will not be permitted to sell any credits it generates through its model of managing livestock grazing routes. The decision is

The Brazilian government blocked 545 rural properties in the Amazonian state of Pará from selling crops and livestock both domestically and internationally, citing illegal deforestation, according to a May 6 announcement by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. The announcement marks one of Brazil’s largest uses of remote sensing to sanction agriculture activity associated

Nearly a third of all antibiotics that people consume end up in the world’s rivers, a new study finds. This could potentially harm aquatic life and impact human health by promoting drug resistance, researchers say. Antibiotics, critical for treating various bacterial infections, are widely consumed by people, livestock and aquaculture fish, but the drugs are

Malagasy scientist Lily-Arison René de Roland has been announced as the winner of this year’s Indianapolis Prize, which recognizes “extraordinary contributions to conservation efforts.” In its announcement, Indianapolis Zoo, which presents the award, highlighted René de Roland’s scientific and conservation work that has led to the discovery of several species and the establishment of four

- The invasion of sap-sucking whiteflies in Bangladesh’s agricultural farms, especially in those of coconuts, bananas and guavas, has become a serious concern among farmers as it can cause widespread damage.- Farmers first noticed these insects in 2019 on coconut plants, and observed they affected the growth of the plants and yields. Research shows whiteflies have already made 61 types of plants as their hosts in Bangladesh.- Though the researchers have yet to confirm how they entered the country, they suggest it could be via imported high-yielding coconut plants in 2014 and 2015.- Researchers suggest deploying a parasitoid wasp, Encarsia guadeloupae, which is considered to tackle the invasion of the whitefly.

- A new study on Sumatran tiger conservation in Indonesia’s Gunung Leuser National Park underscores that poaching remains the top threat, despite extensive patrols and antitrafficking efforts over the past decade.- Researchers found that while patrols removed hundreds of snares and law enforcement increasingly pursued criminal charges, poaching rates remained high and tiger populations continued to decline in some areas.- Despite stricter conservation laws and improved prosecution rates, the financial rewards of poaching still outweigh the penalties, limiting the deterrent effect on poachers and traffickers.- The study recommends increasing patrols in high-risk areas, improving community engagement in law enforcement, and providing alternative livelihoods to reduce the economic lure of poaching.

- Monoculture palm oil production has come at the cost of rainforest habitat, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia.- Researchers are conducting experimental trials in Malaysian Borneo to see if native trees can be planted in oil palm plantations without significantly reducing palm oil yields.- While still in the initial stages, the experiment is so far showing there are no detrimental effects to oil palm growth.- In fact, interplanting with native forest trees may benefit oil palm, with the researchers finding oil palm trees had more leaf growth in agroforestry plots than in monoculture ones.

A new Human Rights Watch report alleges abuse and human rights violations in an Indigenous community in Malaysia’s Sarawak state. The report finds Malaysian timber company Zedtee Sdn Bhd (Zedtee) destroyed culturally valuable forests without the consent of Indigenous people, who are facing an eviction notice from their land. The HRW report says the Sarawak

BARRA DO MAMANGUAPE — Brazil. It’s hard to imagine today, but manatees were once hunted and eaten. These gentle sea mammals were considered a delicacy in Brazil, with their meat consumed by local fishermen and their skin and oil exported to Europe during colonial times. This exploitation pushed the species to the brink of extinction.